Gordon Chambliss, 1919-2014

Engineer with Shell Oil sat on Wheaton-area civic boards

Gordon Delmar Chambliss, an engineer with Shell Oil for 33 years, sat on the board of the Wheaton Mosquito Abatement District and also served with the Wheaton Environmental Improvement Commission.

Mr. Chambliss, 94, died Sunday, Feb. 23, at Central DuPage Hospital in Winfield of a subdural hematoma from a recent fall, said his daughter, Sue Kamm. He had lived in Wheaton for 50 years.

Born and raised in St. Joseph, Ill., he received a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering in 1942 from the nearby University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Mr. Chambliss then went on active duty in the Navy for several years, rising to the rank of lieutenant commander. He was stationed at Cal Tech in Pasadena, in San Diego and in the Pacific.

He later was stationed as an inspection and test officer at Glenview Naval Air Station, rooming with actor Robert Taylor and having breakfast each morning with future Chicago Sun-Times owner Marshall Field IV, his family said. He later liked to quip that the post was the "country club of the Navy," his daughter said.

Mr. Chambliss began his career with Shell as a research engineer in Wood River, Ill. He then transferred to Shell's product application department in 1963.

Around that time, Mr. Chambliss began providing research for an advertising campaign behind Platformate additive, which purported to improve gas mileage.

"Gordon was a wonderful man to work with," said Bob Aiello, a retired senior staff research chemist for Shell who worked alongside Mr. Chambliss from 1970 until 1976. "He was one of our senior statesmen, and he was very selfless. Whatever he knew, he tried to pass on to younger people like me.

Mr. Chambliss later provided technical support for Shell gasoline. Shell shuttered its Chicago office in 1978. Rather than move to Houston, Mr. Chambliss retired.

Soon after that he started his 20-year tenure with Wheaton Mosquito Abatement District, spending some time as its president. Dennis Luehring, the district's current president, recalled being recruited for the post by Mr. Chambliss, who he said worked hard on keeping the district's budget to a minimum.

Mr. Chambliss also led an effort to hire an outside consultant to make sure that the district's outsourced contractor was giving taxpayers their money's worth.

"He was an inspiration in a lot of areas," Luehring said. "I always looked to him for advice."

Mr. Chambliss also sat on the Wheaton Environmental Improvement Commission and was one of the founders of Milton Township's SALT Council, which serves senior citizens in Wheaton and Glen Ellyn by increasing communication and education between seniors and law enforcement.

Mr. Chambliss loved working with friends on their golf games during weekly rounds as well as using long walks on the fairways to deepen friendships, said Charlie McKenna, of Wheaton. He also frequently golfed with his daughter and son, Wally.

"I think his golf game kind of mirrored his philosophy of life," McKenna said. "He had a tranquillity and a kindness, and he was always helpful and complimentary. And he always had a genuine interest in what was going on in your life and how you were doing."

Mr. Chambliss also is survived by his wife of 65 years, Ruth; four grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren.